


Anything You Can Do (He Can Do Better)

by Random_Inked_Thoughts



Series: Dream SMP except Tommy is sad-oh, wait... [4]
Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Angst with a Happy Ending, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hurt TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF), Hurt/Comfort, Tommy and Tubbo are best friends and they deserve this let them have it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-01-11
Packaged: 2021-03-15 10:35:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28687233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Random_Inked_Thoughts/pseuds/Random_Inked_Thoughts
Summary: Tommy scowled, looking out over the ruined remains of his country. Kicking his legs lightly over the edge, he let out a rough sigh. It hurt his lungs to breathe too heavily, but the rattled breath feels more appropriate now than it ever has.A couple of spare pebbles tumble over the edge, skipping and plinking off of the harsh drop. It’s so deep that he can’t even see the bottom of it. He closes his eyes and the crackles and bangs of ignited TNT flash beneath his lids. Biting his lip, he shakes the images from his brain and the tears from his eyes. It wouldn’t do anyone any good to cry now.His fingers clench around the furry edges of his cloak, torn and bloody and threadbare. The oh-so-carefully restitched patches were fraying, and the original light blue of the cloak was barely perceptible through the thick layer of dirt and gunpowder clinging loosely to the fabric. Biting back a hissed curse, Tommy unbuckles the cloak from his shoulders and holds it in shaking hands.-----Everything's fallen apart, and Tommy doesn't know what to focus on as he sits in the ruined wreckage of what used to be L'Manberg. Tubbo shares some of his thoughts with his best friend, trying to help.
Relationships: Toby Smith | Tubbo & TommyInnit
Series: Dream SMP except Tommy is sad-oh, wait... [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2083803
Comments: 2
Kudos: 156





	Anything You Can Do (He Can Do Better)

**Author's Note:**

> I'm gonna preface this by saying that I have very conflicting opinions on who's "in the right" regarding the entire SMP roleplay right now, and with all of the angry opinions being thrown around, I'm not feeling too keen on voicing my own. That being said, this fic is from Tommy's perspective, after L'Manberg, ah, *ahem*... So it's going to reflect a story where Tommy feels cast away and betrayed and is the tragic hero of his story. 
> 
> ADDITIONAL TW: animal death during the l'manberg fight and, uh, blood. Okay now, carry on! :)

Nothing in this crazy, messed up world was black and white. Nothing had a cut and dry solution, a right and a wrong, a yin and a yang. Nothing had a glaringly obvious solution, no conflict came to a completely satisfying conclusion. Nothing in this world was black and white- except for Ranboo. 

Tommy scowled, looking out over the ruined remains of his country. Kicking his legs lightly over the edge, he let out a rough sigh. It hurt his lungs to breathe too heavily, but the rattled breath feels more appropriate now than it ever has. 

  
A couple of spare pebbles tumble over the edge, skipping and plinking off of the harsh drop. It’s so deep that he can’t even see the bottom of it. He closes his eyes and the crackles and bangs of ignited TNT flash beneath his lids. Biting his lip, he shakes the images from his brain and the tears from his eyes. It wouldn’t do anyone any good to cry now. 

His fingers clench around the furry edges of his cloak, torn and bloody and threadbare. The oh-so-carefully restitched patches were fraying, and the original light blue of the cloak was barely perceptible through the thick layer of dirt and gunpowder clinging loosely to the fabric. Biting back a hissed curse, Tommy unbuckles the cloak from his shoulders and holds it in shaking hands. 

One slip and the material would flutter down into the void in front of him- the void that used to be his home. It would be oddly fitting, wouldn’t it? Casting the last bit of Techno away just as he had been cast aside by the man himself. All he had to do was let go.

There was something alluring about the call of the darkness, after all. It was oddly comforting, the feeling of silence choking the life from him. His fingers trembled, curling deeper into the woll on the collar. He hadn’t stolen the cloak, but it was easier to pretend that he had, to push those feelings down, down, down...

Something in his throat constricted painfully. He couldn’t do it. After all of that, the explosions, the betrayal, the destruction, he still couldn’t do it. He still wanted to go back to the tundra, sneaking bites from gapples when Techno wasn’t looking and making awful interior and exterior design choices. He wanted to see that same fond eye roll that Techno always gave him before smacking his shoulder lightly and letting him off easy with a death threat. He wanted to go back to the place he’d slowly taught himself to call home. 

He’d visited, only once. Tubbo had strongly advised him against it, but he’d done it anyway, knocking back an invisibility potion and slinking through the nether like he’d done a million times before. When he’d reached the other side of the portal, he’d found Techno and Phil… and Ranboo. 

They were out in the falling snow, surrounded by dogs. Tommy couldn’t help but smile at the sight of the dogs. He hadn’t had the heart to rat them out, that just didn’t seem fair. They hadn’t seen battle, they weren’t responsible for Technoblade’s actions. He was glad they’d all made it back safe. Well, all of the ones that hadn’t seen battle, at least. 

_ It had stood over him, teeth exposed as it growled a little deeper. He was scrambling for purchase on the hard ground, turtle shell helmet long cracked in two and discarded. The dog crept ever closer, and he could feel his heart racing furiously. Quackity lay still to his left, eyes glassy and his throat ripped open. The knowledge that his friend would respawn soon did nothing to stop the swell of bile rising quickly in his throat. Blood was everywhere around them, glistening on the stone and the glass and the muzzle of the mutt creeping ever closer.  _

_ “Help me!” Tommy had screamed with what could have been his last breath. “Someone, help me!”  _

_ The dog had let out a final bark, leaping into the air in front of him. Tommy had screwed his eyes shut, flinching on principle, waiting for a bite that never came. When he finally opened them, Sapnap was standing in front of him, the very tip of his netherite sword poking through the rib cage of the dog, having skewered it. He shrugged it off of his sword like it was second nature, it’s carcass slumping down to rest among the others with a dull thud.  _

_ “I thought it was my time…” Tommy whispered, nearly breathless.  _

_ Sapnap had just given him a grim smile, hoisting him to his feet. “It’s never your time to die, kid,” he had replied, and something akin to a rusty knife twisted inside of Tommy’s chest at those words. “Not today. Not while we’re still here, fighting.”  _

_ Tommy had nodded back, mustering whatever little bit of courage he still had inside of him and grabbing a discarded sword. It could have been anyone’s, his guess was as good as any. Giving it an experimental swing, he grit his teeth and moved on, holding the sword like it was his lifeline. It wasn’t like the original owner was going to miss it.  _

These dogs had never seen war, never tasted human blood. These dogs romped in the snow and ran circles around their eager playmates and wagged their tails freely. Tommy watched as Ranboo bent down to the dog’s eye level, clearly cooing affectionately at one of the fluffy animals. Tommy could hear his noise of delight as the dog rolled over on its stomach, hoping for belly rubs. 

Phil was saying something to Ranboo, smile as bright as the frozen tundra around them. He seemed happier than Tommy had ever seen him.  _ Unrelated,  _ he told himself. He wished he could believe it.

The door to the house opened, and Techno walked out. He held something in his hands, wrapped over itself and slightly balled up. Tommy watched as he wordlessly offered it to Ranboo, letting the gift speak for itself. 

Ranboo let out a pleased gasp when he unfurled it, and Tommy felt his heart drop into his stomach. The half enderman expressed his admiration for the furry cloak, new and completely free of rips and tears. 

Techno had to put up a hand as the other boy kept expressing his thanks, waving him off with a small chuckle. “It’s just in case it gets too cold,” he replied. “You don’t need to overthink it.” 

Ranboo’s response was muffled by the sound of softly crunching snow, and Tommy wished he could get a little closer, but he didn’t want to risk it. Philza had come to a stop standing next to Technoblade. 

Techno just gave Ranboo a strange look, before smiling. That looked more genuine than anything Tommy had ever seen as well.  _ Unrelated, please, it’s unrelated.  _ “You know, Ranboo,” the tall man said, tone bordering on fond, “You’re alright.” 

“It certainly is a nice change of pace,” Phil agreed with him, before turning back to the boy standing where Tommy used to stand. “Now, we don’t have a lot of space in the house right now, and Edward was here first, so you’ll have to stay with the dogs for a while if that’s alright. I know it’s not exactly perfect, but…” 

Ranboo was quick to respond, and judging by the almost blinding grin on his face and the grateful look in his eyes, it was more than alright. Tommy had slunk away, back through the crackle and sizzle of the nether portal. He had seen enough.

Emotions had never been his strong suit, much like with any other teenage boy. He was fine right up until he wasn’t. He shoved his emotions down so far he thought he’d buried them for good, then stood by and watched as the geyser of untapped anger erupted and flooded and ruined him. He made rash decisions and regretted nothing until he sat lying awake in the dead of night, brain buzzing with unsaid words. 

Staring at the ruins of his home, he felt too much and not enough. That was becoming a common feeling, the numbness of feeling everything for too long. He couldn’t care enough to state his opinion on it. 

Soft footsteps disrupted his train of thought. With a small huff, Tubbo plopped down next to him at the edge of the world, dangling his feet off the edge to match him. 

“Hey,” he whispered, wind ruffling his blonde hair softly. 

“Hey yourself,” Tubbo replied. 

The two of them sat in silence for a while, just gazing at everything they never thought would happen. Call it cockiness, call it pride, but Tommy had never actually thought Dream and Techno would pull it off. Even now, a thick fog of disbelief clouded his vision. If he closed his eyes, he could almost see the lanterns, the winding streets, the soft glow from the windows of Phil’s house. One blink later it was gone. 

“I can’t believe he did this,” Tommy finally spoke. 

Tubbo took his time responding. He supposed that was alright. It was already over. They had nothing but time now. “I know you two were close.” 

It felt nothing like their usual banter. He missed the rapidfire conversation he used to have, easily bouncing off of one another. Now, the silence between them was deafening. “Not as close as I thought, apparently.” He couldn’t keep the bitterness from his tone, so he didn’t even try. 

Tubbo just hummed, a near silent invitation for him to continue. 

“And he’s already replaced me,” Tommy whispered. “I know our country has been burnt to the ground around us and that should really be taking most of my energy to digest, but the only thought I have running through my head is that he  _ replaced me.”  _

Tubbo frowned. “Maybe it’s for the best for you to focus on something like that for now. This- L’manberg, that is- will eat you up if you think too hard about it, trust me. It’ll swallow you.” 

“Let it do it’s worst,” Tommy replied hollowly. “There’s not much left of me to eat.” 

“Don’t do that,” Tubbo replied immediately. “That’s not fair to me. That’s not fair to you.” 

Tommy just laughed again. It didn’t sound any more genuine than before. “They’re better off without me. They’re happy.” 

“They were happy with you too.” 

He rolled his eyes. “I may not have known Technoblade as well as I thought I did, but I do know he sure as hell was not happy to have me there.” 

“Sometimes words fail at expressing what people really feel.” 

“They’ve  _ replaced  _ me.”

“There’s no replacing you,” Tubbo said softly. 

“Pretty lies hide ugly truths.” 

Tubbo’s frown deepened.  _ “I’m _ happy with you, now. Can’t that be enough? We’re lying in the ruined wasteland of my failure, and I’m so relieved that out of everyone in this world, you’re the one that’s here with me.”

Tommy looked over at his friend, eyes tracking the hesitant curve of a smile on his scarred face. 

Tubbo had been through so much, pulled at and tugged on until a carefully constructed smile and a threadbare mask of lies were the only things concealing the burning pit of insecurity and fear inside of him. He had done what he thought was right for his country at the expense of himself. He had tried his hardest at every turn to keep everyone happy and content while grappling with a system none of them fully understood. 

And right now, he had decided to come out here just to make sure that Tommy was okay, despite the fact that his emotional trauma still raged inside of him like a roaring fire. 

Tommy looked at Tubbo, and he decided that he knew who his real friends were. He decided that he knew who he could trust. 

Letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding in, he smiled back at the brunette. “Yeah,” Tommy whispered, scooting a little closer and bumping their shoulders together, just like old times, “Yeah, this can be enough.” 

**Author's Note:**

> If anyone so much as tries to interpret this relationship as romantic, I'm coming for your kneecaps <3
> 
> I hope you're having a great day and staying safe out there! :)


End file.
